The labour conditions of migrant workers in Malaysia have been under the international spotlight in recent months. First was a riot in an IT factory involving Nepalese workers. A month later, a report on the working conditions of labour in the electronics sector found conditions that were headlined “modern day slavery” in international press.

The government and the MMA could curb the spread of contagious diseases by opening up accessibility to medical treatment and health care for all, without discrimination, says Angeline Loh.

Chin refugees from Burma in Malaysia – Photo credit: hmanthlak picasa

In late September, the Malaysian Medical Association expressed its worry over the ‘rise in infectious diseases’ brought in and spread by migrants illegally entering the country (theSun, 29 September 2014).

Wednesday, October 22, 2014

The Malaysian Trade Union Congress, MTUC has submitted a memorandum to the Bar Council and the Malaysian Human Rights Commission, SUHAKAM, over alleged mistreatment of union members by certain companies.

MTUC wants the two institutions to investigate complaints of misconduct levelled at several companies, including suppressing union members.

The memorandum was handed over during a peaceful gathering in front of the Bar Council and also at the SUHAKAM office.

About 150 members and leaders from various unions were present.

MTUC Secretary General, Gopal Krishnam said the unions understand the employers' needs, but they must not interfere with union's business unless they broke the law.

National Union of Flight Attendants Malaysia, NUFAM former president Ismail Nasaruddin, who was recently sacked by Malaysia Airlines, said they wanted their rights to be protected.

According to the MTUC, more than 100 workers from several companies have been fired and suspended for trivial reasons.

Tuesday, October 21, 2014

SEOUL: Migrant farm workers in South Korea have become victims of rampant abuse under a “shameful” work permit system that encourages exploitation, Amnesty International said in a report published Monday.

The report came on the heels of a mission to South Korea by the UN’s special rapporteur on racism, who also cited “serious problems” faced by the growing number of foreign workers hired as low-paid, unskilled manual labourers.

By Linda ErokeWeak employment growth, stagnant wages and widening inequality are depressing consumption and deterring investment in many countries, the International Labour Organisation (ILO) has said.

The international labour body, in a statement to the International Monetary and Financial Committee of the World Bank, noted that the slow growth of the global economy in recent years showed signs of becoming a persistent low growth trap.The organisation observed that growth in the global economy is slowing in 2014, adding that even the forecasts of slight improvement in 2015 are beset with uncertainty.

The Malaysian Trades Union Congress (MTUC) has warned Malaysian Airline System Bhd (MAS) and major shareholder Khazanah Nasional Bhd not to short-change the 6,000 airline employees who may be made redundant under its overhaul plan.

Ohms union chairman Zhao Shaobo made a speech during the third union member representative meeting in 2012

Even the reformers in China’s trade union system do not think all companies are ready for democratic union elections. They fear that in certain factories, labour relations would go out of control if union leaders are democratically elected. Generally speaking, there are three types of factories that are not suitable for democratic election: first, factories that have tense labour relations. Workers at this kind of factories are likely to elect radical leaders as union chairman, who will not be helpful in stabilising labour relations.

Strong job creation and wage gains have proved to be a key factors in reducing poverty —quite substantially— in our region over the past decade. Growth is projected to be more modest still in 2014. The fact that investment has stagnated or is even falling in several of the larger countries is a particular cause for concern, since it not only affects current economic progress, but also stifles future growth potential.

The Industrial Relations Act 1967, section 5 - Prohibition on employers and their trade unions in respect of certain acts’ provides that ‘…(1) No employer or trade union of employers, and no person action on behalf of an employer or such trade union shall-(a) impose any condition in a contract of employment seeking to restrain the right of a person who is a party to the contract to join a trade union, or to continue his membership in a trade union;(b) refuse to employ any person on the ground that he is or is not a member or an officer of a trade union;(c) discriminate against any person in regard to employment, promotion, any condition of employment or working conditions on the ground that he is or is not a member or officer of a trade union;(d) dismiss or threaten to dismiss a workman, injure or threaten to injure him in his employment or alter or threaten to alter his position to his prejudice by reason that the workman- (i) is or proposes to become, or seeks to persuade any other person to become, a member or officer of a trade union; or (ii) participates in the promotion, formation or activities of a trade union; or (e) induce a person to refrain from becoming or to cease to be a member or officer of a trade union by conferring or offering to confer any advantage on or by procuring or offering to procure any advantage for any person…

Information on the Malaysian social security system - how to contribute and what benefits to expect...

The Malaysian Social Security system is called SOCSO, or PERKESO (Pertubuhan Keselamatan Sosial). It provides financial assistance to employees and their families in the event of an accident which results in death, disability or illness, or an occupational disease. SOCSO provides two kinds of insurance:

In Thailand, Social Security Office was designated by the government to impose such scheme to ensure that proper social security assistance is provided to its members.The Social Security Scheme is operated according to the Social Security Act B.E 2533 (A.D. 1990) and its Amendment .E. 2537 (A.D. 1994) and B.E. 2542 (A.D.1999). The Office is responsible to provide financial assistance to its membersduring the occurrence of sickness, maternity, invalidity, old age and unemployment,death, the provision of medical care and the provision of child allowance.

Demand for high and low-skilled workers could increase by about 60 percent when ASEAN integration takes effect next year, a joint study by the International Labor Organization (ILO) and Asian Development Bank (ADB) concluded.

“The AEC (ASEAN Economic Community) will have major benefits for the Philippines. However, to maximize these benefits, the government must take decisive actions now, especially in terms of labor and employment as too many workers are still in poor quality jobs,” Sukti Dasgupta, chief of the ILO Regional Economic and Social Analysis Unit, said at the ILO-ADB ASEAN integration forum.

Gopal laments the lack of benefits to workers in the private sector, especially in terms of minimum wage increase and cost of living allowanceSome seven million private sector workers who earn less than RM3,000 a month are no better off under Budget 2015 as it does not adequately address their financial concerns, the Malaysian Trade Union Congress said today.

Expressing disappointment with the budget proposals tabled by the prime minister yesterday, its secretary-general N.Gopal Kishnam said the umbrella body for trade unions had expected Datuk Seri Najib Razak to advise private sector employers to pay monthly cost of living allowance to workers.

"It was done in the 1970s when Najib's father Tun Abdul Razak was the prime minister and later, employers absorbed the allowance as part of the salary package,"